Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1887-08-27
1--WE ARE WITNESSES
DISCOURSE BY REV. DIR. TALMAeE
AT THE HAMPToNS.


AT THE -HAMPTONS.
The World VIII Dc Brought to God Nos
Through Argument, but Through Tes-
tImony-The CHRISTIANS Weapon In
the Conflict Is Faith, Not Logic.
THE HAMpToNs, Aug. 2l.-@The Facts
Proved" is the subject of discourse by the
Rev. T. De Witt Talmnge, D. D., today.
His text Is from Acts XIV, 8: 1--WE are wit
nesses.n Following Is his sermon in full:
In the days of George Stephenson, the per-
fector of the locomotive engine, the scientists
proved conclusively that O railway trnin
could never be driven by steam power sue
cessfully and without peril; but the rushing
express trains from Liverpool to Edinburgh,
and from Edinburgh to London, have made
oil tho nation witnesses of the splendid
achievement. >Machinists and nayigators
proved couclusig tlpt @ stenmer;conldsney7
ssfscrSssth ocean tho soone en- Ind
they successfully proved ssths lnpossibility of
such M undertaking thnn the work wos done,
and the passengers on the Cunard and the In
man and the National and the White Star
lines are witnesses. There went up guffaw
Of wise laughter at Professor Morse's PROPOSE
ton to make the lightning Of heaven his err
rand boy, and it was proved conclusively
that the thing could never be done; but now
all the news of tho wide world, by Associated
Press, put In your hands every morning and
night, has made all nations witnesses.
So in tho time Of Christ 1t was proved con-
clusively that It was impossible for him to
rise from the dead. 1t was shown logically
that when he was dead he was dead, and the
heart and tho liver and the lungs having
ceased to perform their offices, the limbs
would be rigid beyond all power Of friction
or arousal. They showed 1t to be al absolute
absurdity that the dead Christ should ever
get up alive; but no sooner had they proved
this than the dead Christ arose, and the dis
ciples bebeld him, heard his voice and talked
with him, and they took the witness stand to
prove that to be true which the 'wiseacres OF
the day had proved to be impossible; the
record of tho experiment and of the testi-
nlony is in the text: @Elim hath God raised
from the dead, whereof Ee are witnesses"
Now, let me play the Dkeptic for q moment.
aThcre is no Cod says the slsoptic, "for I
have never seen him with my physical eye
sight. Your Bible is pacl, of contradictions.
There never was miracle. Lazarus was not
raised from tho dead, and the water was
never turned into wine. Your religion Is an
imposition on the credulity of the ages There
is an aged man moving In that pew as though
be would like to respond Here are hundreds
of people with faces little flushed at these
announcements, and oil through this house
there is suppressed feeling which would like
to spea, out in behalf Of the truth Of our
glorious Christianity, as In the days Of the
text. crying out: "We are witnessed"
The fact La, that il this world Is ever
brought to God, Il ,willnot BIO through argu-
ment, but through testimony. You might
cover the whole earth with apologies for
Christianity and learned treatises In defense
of religion-you would not convert soul.
Lectures on the harmony between science and
religion are beautiful mental discipline, but
have never saved SOUL and never will save
soul. Put man of the world and a nlau of
the church against each other and the man of
the world will In all probability get the
triumph. There are thousand things In our
religion That seem Illogical to the world, and
always will seem Illogical
Our weapon tn this conflict Is faith, not
logic; faith, not metaphysics; faith, not pro
fundity; faith, not scholastic exploration.
But then, in order to have faith we must
have testimony, and if 500 men, or 900 men,
or 500, 600 men, or 5000, 600 men get up and
tell me that they have felt the religion OF
Jesus Christ Joy, comfort, help, an In
SEPARATION, am bound az fur minded man
to accept their testimony. want just now
to put before you three propositions, the
truth of which think this audience will at
test with overwhelming unnDimity.
The first proposition Is: We ore witnesses
that the religion Of Christ Is able to convert
q soul.
The Gospel may have had hard time to
conquer US, we may have fought it back, but
we were vanquished. You say conversion Is
only an imaginary thing. We know better.
awe are witnesses" There never was SO
great change in our heart and life on any
other subject as OH this. People laughed at
the missionaries in Madagascar because they
preached ten wears without one convert; but
there are Sc, 900 converts i'll Madagascar to
day. People laughed at DR.. Judson, the Bop
fist missionary, because he kept on preaching
In Burnlab five years without single con-
vert; but there are 20, 0OO Baptists i'll Burmah
today. People laughed at DR.. Morrison, in
China, for preaching there seven years with
out single conversion; but there ara $1,000
Christians In China today. People laughed
at the missionaries for preaching at Tahiti
for fifteen years without single conversion,
and at the missionaries for preaching IN Ben.
gal seventeen years without single CONVEX.
sion; yet in all those lands there are multi
tubes of Christians today.
But why GO so tar to find evidences Of the
Gospels power to save souli 1--WE are wit.
nesses.n We wero go proud that no man
could have humblcd us; we were SO hard that
no earthly power could have melted US;
angels OF God we're oil around about us, they
could not overcome us; but one day, perhaps
at a Methodist anxious seat, or at a Presby-
terrain cethechetical lecture, or at burial, or
on horseback, q power seized US, and made us
get down, and made us trenble, and made us
lneel, and made us cry for mercy. and we
tried to wrench ourselves away from the
grasp, but we could not Itflung us fat, and
when we arose we were as much changed as
Goureis the heather, who went into prayer
meeting with dagger and q gun to disturb
the meeting and destroy it, but the next day
was found crying: "Oh, my great sinsl Obi
nv great saviour!" and for eleven years
preached the gospel of Christ to his fellow
mountaineers, the last words on his dying
lips being "Free gracel" Oh, 1t was free
grace.
There is a man who was for ten years a
hard drinker. The dreadful appetite had
sent down its roots around the palate and
the tongue, and on down until they were
interlinked with the vita|s OF the body,
mind and soul; but he has not taken
any stimulants for two years. What did thatl
Not temperance societies. Not prohibitios
laws Not moral suasion. Conversion did 1t.
"Why,r said ono upon whom the greet change
had come, "sir, feel just as though were
somebody else"
There isn sea captain who swore all the
INV from New York to Havana, and from